Who's To Say
by Ex the Firefly
Summary: Sootopolis City is known for being a tourist trap. Not for it's unique Pokémon community. However, when the Pokémon are faced with an incredible challenge, morals will be tested, and they will learn that humans aren't the only creatures capable of sin.


PART ONE

Night time in Sootopolis was much like day, except many things were missing. The clear azure skies had disintegrated into black decay, massive balls of the basic materials used to compose the universe effectively acting as diamonds in the rough. The cars were gone and the tourists were sound asleep in their hotel rooms, once well populated beaches becoming the equivalent of deserts except cooler with less sand and sun. Houses were sometimes lit, but not too many: on Mondays, all sorts of people liked to sleep early. After all, the week was just beginning, and they had to conserve as much energy as possible. The future midnight would take place two hours later. It was time to retreat.

Wrathful orange eyes cast their vision onto the gravel path. There they were, the humans, blissfully walking along the wretched sidewalk they had created. Once proud trees had shrivelled to thin twigs and stumps. The small forest along Sootopolis Lake might have been miniscule, but it was still the only forest in Sootopolis City that wasn't caged in by roads and cars. The humans had long since forgotten about protesting its downfall, picket signs cleared from view as woodcutters and large, metal behemoths ate at wood and grass. Was this really the end? In Sootopolis City, there had always been a delicate balance, an equilibrium that had been standing so powerfully that time could not wipe its memory from existence. It could not be shattered and cast aside this quickly, like pieces of glass from an old picture frame. The humans, however, were indignant and foolish; they did not understand this harmony, only saw what they believed, and in time, had corrupted an entire race into believing what they believed in. This was _not_ the destiny of the Pokémon race, the sentient magics with power that had eluded humanity for eons, only able to harness them by poisoning their ideals. As humans passed by, their aura of overconfidence and unjust dominance tainting the very atmosphere, a subtle war cry was flared. Thus, a spicy, persuasively 'energetic' scent twisted with the wind, opening the eyes of hunters and making their hearts beat to the sound of war drums.

A Bayleef stepped onto the path, tranquil pools of liquified amber staring at the wretched beasts. Men stopped in their tracks, meeting the grass-type's gaze with doubt and amusement. These were the Pokémon that attacked three times before, uncoordinated screams having paired up perfectly with their aura of overconfidence and unjust dominance of the surrounding area. How many times were innocent men, who were simply doing their job, paying for food, and keeping their loved ones warm tortured by these menaces? Of course, the men were prepared this time: a guard was walking with them, a guard who quickly felt for his weapon the moment the Bayleef became visible. The Pokémon's very appearance was a war cry, a challenge of life or death. Like the sun and the moon who battled over dominance every day, the Perennial Gang of Sootopolis' Pokémon community, a community who had lived in the concrete jungle for longer than anyone knew, would wage war on the humans who dared take away their home, their lives, and in return, the humans would struggle back, unsatisfied with simply letting the vermin who had attacked them and tried to kill them nights before go free without a few bruises.

Crimson energy briefly lit up the darkness like a shooting star that faded before anyone knew it had come. From the blood coloured lights something appeared, first as a shape the light made and then fading into existence. As it was given substance, brown paws brushed away bits of gravel, short, orange fur casting slightly different shadows as the wind blew through. Glare met glare as the Raichu moved into a defensive position, his moral duty to protect his trainer and friend from this wild thug.

"Slave," Thymus snarled, spreading his own pastel yellow legs into an aggressive stance, "You're nothing but a Pokémon slave."

"I am _not_ a slave," Raichu quickly snarled back, electricity escaping from his cheeks and tail, "I will admit, the humans cannot understand what I say all the time, but I choose to protect them because they protect me. One like you could never learn how to appreciate the fortune found in a human partner."

"Human partner my ass," Thymus roared back, jaws twisting in a snarl that greatly contrasted with the peaceful expression most Bayleef had. He charged, white nails digging into the rocky ground, jumping at the Raichu. The electric mouse proved to be faster, however, and dodged the oncoming Body Slam, leaving Thymus to crash into the ground and send dirt flying.

With the first attack launched, comrades alerted the party to their presence. Jumping from the darkness, various other Pokémon launched their own cannons: Bulbasaur shot Leech Seeds from their backs, a Victreebel looked like it was going to swallow a man, and leaves of the most natural shade of green tore through cotton shirts. The humans were not without their own destructive forces, however: a Duskull kept grass-types from getting too close with Icy Wind, a Fearow ruthlessly made a slow, foolish Vileplume bleed from the eye with a masterfully aimed Drill Peck, and a Mime Jr made brother clash against brother with a simple Teeter Dance. The war waged and blood spilled, staining the ground with crimson colours. In a certified trainer battle, this would not be happening: attack dampeners would limit the Pokémon's power and make attacks nonlethal. But here, wild Pokémon were attacking humans, so there could be no limits.

The men had split up in order to deal with separate wild Pokémon. Raichu was fending off a stupid Oddish with his tail, whipping it until its face was bloody and deformed into a squishy mess. Thymus arrived, seething with rage- the Bayleef smelled like thyme leaves. As Raichu watched the Oddish run off, feeling sort of sorry for destroying its eyes and mouth, he was hit with an unexpected Leaf Storm. The powerful attack sent Raichu spiralling into the ground, leaves leaving stinging, small cuts in every place. He crashed into tiny trees and stumps that had somehow dodged their complete annihilation, stopping his involuntary flight by rolling across the ground several times. When Raichu was able to see clearly, he saw Thymus triumphantly pushing a leg down on his chest, eyes giving Raichu a look with the sharpness of daggers, "You, _Pokémon_," Thymus began, "have given us, _the_ _Pokémon_ no choice but to attack. This. Is. Your. _Retribution_!"

As Thymus lowered his head leaf at Raichu's exposed neck, a human came running, ignoring the warnings of his colleagues to keep a safe distance. At the same time, a small Hoppip hopped towards the fight, tears streaming from its eyes. Both of them were there only to help the cause they viewed as justified, the human to protect his life long partner and best friend, the Hoppip to try and help with the fight, no matter how useless its youth might have been. They would be the spark that started a war, the spark that revealed the depths of the Pokémon of Sootopolis, the crimes that would be committed, the unspoken, rigid codes of honour, and the consequences that occurred when they were broken. The darkness that lies in the heart of humanity would make itself known to the underground world of Pokémon, and they would learn that the faults of humanity were not missing in their own souls.

Raichu's eyes dilated, bewildered. His human friend, his master, and his family grabbed Thymus' body, screaming words that faded with the events that transpired. Thymus toiled for freedom, thundering like a savage beast. The leaf on his head cut easily into this stranger's neck, red life that smelled like rust painting Thymus' scales scarlet. The Bayleef easily made his way free, eyes ablaze with glory and rage. This would show the humans the grave mistake they had made, that they massacred an ancient contract, and would pay with everything they held dear to them.

The officer who had offered his assistance to the construction workers acted as quickly as he could. But his movements were careless in the heat of battle and revolt, and the gun he had was fired too slowly. As the human male crumpled, gasping for breath, the Hoppip seemed to explode from the inside out. Blood got into Thymus' eyes, mouth agape in horror.

_The world is not to be put in order; the world is order, incarnate._

Thymus wailed, furious eyes landing on the humans. However, the cries of the Perennial Gang mattered more, and as much as Thymus wanted revenge, the gang, the family, came first. They were crying out for a retreat: the sight of a young Hoppip being killed sent their morale into a blaze, and true fear made their attacks go awry. The grass-types fled into the darkness, voices promising a punishment that suited the crime. As they fled, running towards the small amount of forest they still had, Raichu lay numbly in the rubble, staring at the stars as they glittered with false hope. The way Thymus used the title of Pokémon was odd: when speaking about himself (and presumably other wild Pokémon), he would make a sound different than the normal way Bayleef said Pokémon. Perhaps it was simply a Bayleef thing (Pokémon dialects tended to vary), but the hatred Thymus used to call owned Pokémon was noticed. Raichu's thoughts wandered. Weren't all Pokémon equals? And what was so wrong about defending those you cared about? Had the connection and mutual understanding all Pokémon once had, the very force that made them able to understand each other without any sort of barrier despite the radically different languages, been ravaged?

_It is for us to harmonize with this order._

_ Ravaged Sootopolis._

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Look like I'm actually doing it.

Name's Ex. This here? Just some fanfic I'm using to _shamelessly_ advertise my forum. Which is what I intend to do with_ you._ You can find the link in my profile under homepage. I won't add the link into the story itself because, well, that's just unprofessional. Then again, this here fic isn't quite 'professional': my English is tends to fail utterly in some places, but forgive me, I'm just a human person.

This is my 'experiment' if you don't mind. I have the plot thought out but not much in terms of detail. From here on out, I'll be stumbling through the darkness, following my brain... and hoping to screw a few brains of innocent readers in the process.

This fic can be found on deviantart under the username _ex-traordinary_. I am ex-traordinary. I usually put it on dA so friends and watchers can correct my mistakes before I upload it on the big FF. Have fun, and watch your back. You never know what's watching you.


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